TargetTalk

About 5-6 months ago I decided to get into shooting
I was not sure if this was going to be serious so I just bought a Ruger M iii to keep the cost low
I am now feeling pretty serious and want to improve myself and my equipment
So far I have replaced the grip and trigger/sear assembly
It does shoot much better but I'm still not too comfortable with the grip(volquarsten laminated wood)
I have been looking for better grip but just don't see anything close to what I'm looking for(match wooden grip)
I also think that I need to replace the rear sight
But then I'm thinking maybe I need to invest on another pistol
I have been looking at some on line but can't really tell what's going to work for me
Is there a place I can get better grips for my ruger?
Or should I put the money towards a better pistol?
I'm thinking about $1200-$1500 to spend on new/used if possible
What can I look for in that price range?
What about FAS any good?
I might be able to get a FWB aw93 at a pretty good price. Any tips on that pistol?
Thanks

Dear Jerber:

you are at the classic fork in the road that most pistol shooters find themselves in after a couple years on the firing line.

To upgrade or to buy a top notch gun used? Tuff question, no good answer.

I do address this in our team's website, www.ccrcpistolteam.weebly.com.

I think that what I would recommend is that you check the gun sites frequently and see if you can get a pardini sp new for about $1,200.00. There are a couple reasons, first off is that the pardini is a awesome pistol to begin with. Secondly, the sp new is fully supported by pardini usa and as such, the probability of a lemon is low and if you do have problems, they do have customer support here in the USA.

You might be able to find a older "Don Nygoord" Pardini. Check with Pardini usa to make sure they still support this model.

Regards,
Cranky

You might also take a look at the Hammerli Xesse line at

Larry's Guns

After shooting for five months, you don't have the slightest clue what you want or need.

It just sounds like you're trying "buy points".

Continue using the Ruger until you attain "Expert" or "A" rank. By then you won't be asking us what you need; you'll know!

AW93 is a good heater. Old school though; slow cyclic rate. Very adjustable trigger.

Pardini SP would be a better buy in my view.

Rover is right that a gun won't teach you how to shoot it.

Avoid FAS in my opinion.

Have fun.

A new top of the line pistol may not "buy points" for many as has been pointed out, however in my case it has.

71.6% of all excuses in the "why my score was not better" book have to do with blaming equipment.
My opinion would be to try as many of the current "must haves" and go with the one that speaks to you in that loving way.

As you progress you will discover that confidence has as much to do with good scores as technique, talent or equipment. Having a more technologically advanced and more adjustable pistol will make shooting that little bit more of a special experience, increase the level of enjoyment and remove the temptation to blame equipment. This definitely has a confidence inspiring spinoff.

Our journey on earth is short and the journey shooting pistols is even more brief....buy the best you can afford....seet it up to suit your needs.....get a good coach to avoid as many bad habits as possible.....and shoot, shoot and then shoot some more.

When the love of pistol shooting wains you will always be able to sell high quality equipment ...and you will have travelled business class instead of economy.

what kind of matches do you plan to shoot?
You nannot compare a Ruger MKiii to a FWB93... in the essence their are diferent guns!
Some matches dont allow anatomic grips, while on ISSF pistol events you wont get good scores without a nice anatomic grip!

A few hours after my post here, I came up with this:

viewtopic.php?f=6&t=48612

It pretty much sums up many posts I've made on this site.

deadeyedick, very well said and I completely agree. There are all sorts of reasons to upgrade equipment that go well beyond "buying points." How about motivation?

Rover, I appreciate your opinion and experience—and I've read it in more than one post; you clearly have a wealth of knowledge, but you simply can't pigeonhole every post about upgrading equipment as an attempt to "buy points." To do so makes you look a bit pompous.

Almost any decent modern pistol will shoot far better groups from a rest than is humanly possible standing & shooting with one hand. One of the major reasons for spending extra money on a high end pistol is the adjustable ergonomics that allow an individual to extract more of that accuracy. The Ruger's "one size fits some" approach is missing several such features. If your hands aren't sufficiently average in size, many inexpensive target pistols will not be easy to shoot well.

As a case in point, my wife has very small hands. When she was on her college pistol team, she was issued a S&W Model 41. The grips were too big, and the trigger position was fixed. She had to shoot it by dragging her finger on the side of the trigger, because it was impossible for her to reach the trigger properly. Despite that, she helped set a national collegiate team record.

She now shoots a Pardini SP with an extra small grip, and the trigger set all the way to the rear. Her scores have gone up considerably, and she is one of the top shooters in the Greater Boston Pistol League.

Everyone thank you for your inputs
I decided that I will look into getting another pistol and not spending anymore money on the ruger
"Buying point" or not it's irrelevant because I still need to get better regardless if i keep the Ruger or with a new pistol
So I might as well work with something that I feel comfortable with
So for now I am looking at a few
Some of you suggested the Pardini
I have looked into it. Very nice and it seems to be the most used in competitions
But the price tag is scaring me!
I was also suggested the Benelli95e
Price is more affordable but don't know if it will show in the quality/performance
Can anyone tell me about it?
I also noticed that they have another model
90 and looks like it has a better/match grip as opposed to the 95e
But a little more pricey
Thank you
BTW
Right now I am just shooting at 25y
That's the max the range has that I go to so it's about 7' Short of the 25 metre
But for now I just have to deal with
Jerry

pgmlml wrote:Some matches dont allow anatomic grips, while on ISSF pistol events you wont get good scores without a nice anatomic grip!

You are aware, of course, that the world record in CF pistol (298+299) was set without anatomic grips, aren't you?
http://newsok.com/oklahoma-city-man-set ... le/3859872
The silhouette is now retired, but the precision targets are still the same.

jerber wrote:Everyone thank you for your inputs
I decided that I will look into getting another pistol and not spending anymore money on the ruger
<snip>
I was also suggested the Benelli95e
Price is more affordable but don't know if it will show in the quality/performance
Can anyone tell me about it?
I also noticed that they have another model
90 and looks like it has a better/match grip as opposed to the 95e
But a little more pricey
Jerry

I have both a Benelli MP90S and a Pardini. I like the Pardini design from an engineering standpoint, but the Benelli shoots a bit better for me. My daughter has informed me that the Benelli is now "hers", so I shoot my Pardini most of the time. They are both equally accurate from a rest, I suspect, but the ergonomics of the Benelli suits me a little better. I'm old fashioned, and I also like the idea that is is still made out of steel.

The MP90S is the same pistol as an MP95, except that it has better grips and a better (mostly more adjustable) trigger. If you have average sized hands & fingers, you can start with the MP95, and then upgrade the grips and (if you find the trigger to be an issue), the trigger assembly later on. The final result will be more expensive, but you can do it in stages as your budget permits.

I help coach the MIT collegiate team, and we have ~ 22 Benelli 22's. Most started out as MP95's, but we have upgraded the grips on most of the pistols. MIT has won the Nationals Collegiate Championships several times with these pistols, so they are quite competitive. I've never understood why they aren't more popular in major international competitions. Some of it may be that Benelli makes 99% of their money selling shotguns, and the target pistols are a bit of a sideline.

Now that they are legal to sell in Massachusetts again, I am planning on buying another one to replace the one my daughter has latched onto.

Well.... I did it!
I got a Benelli mp 90
I was going for the 95e but Larry's was out of stock so I went for the 90
WHAT A DIFFERENCE!
I can't believe that some of you suggested to keep the Ruger
The mp 90 feels so comfortable/natural in my hand
Really nice!
And to take this pistol apart is a joy!!!
So far I like it
The Ruger is going for sale
Glad I did
Jerry

Comfortable in the hand? Simple takedown? How dare you spend YOUR money on something that YOU like? Is Rover aware of this heresy? Don't forget what he wrote: "...you don't have the slightest clue what you want or need."

Enjoy your new pistol.

Comfortable in the hand? Beware. A great Russian shooter Makhmood Umarov, world champion ('58) and twice Olympic silver medalist in free pistol ('56 and '60) was once given a newly made personal grip for his pistol. After a brief practice session he returned it to the gripmaker and said, "I am not going to using it. Too comfortable."

shaky hands wrote:Comfortable in the hand? Beware. A great Russian shooter Makhmood Umarov, world champion ('58) and twice Olympic silver medalist in free pistol ('56 and '60) was once given a newly made personal grip for his pistol. After a brief practice session he returned it to the gripmaker and said, "I am not going to using it. Too comfortable."

Sure but i'm not Russian! And i'm not a world champion! (at least not yet!!!!)

jerber wrote: And i'm not a world champion! (at least not yet!!!!)

But isn't that exactly what you should be telling yourself? At least according to Lanny Bassham's book-like promotion of his business, so well regarded by many on this board ("I am the world champion!" Write it down, rinse, repeat for 21 days.)

Wise choice jerber, the Ruger is a tin can plinking pistol made from stamped parts like a 45 Liberator from WW2, the Benelli was designed to be a match winning target pistol, I had one years ago and shot into Standard Pistol master grade.
You should be doing a PB in no time.

shootaholic wrote:Standard Pistol master grade.

What is Master grade by your standard of measure?